Tasteless Trends

Remember seeing rolled ice cream for the first time on Instagram, then being a little disappointed by how it actually tasted? Southern Californians are known for being a bit food trend crazy—willingly waiting in ridiculously long lines, or traveling at length just to post the latest dish on Instagram. 

It’s understandable that chefs use interesting and whimsical spins on different dishes in order to catch the public’s attention. However, it’s rare to see food trends that taste good enough to keep us coming back for more in the long term. 

Restaurants like Black Tap, located in Downtown Disney, draw people in with their Crazy Milkshakes piled high with full size candy bars, clouds of cotton candy, or entire slices of cake. Yes, the impressively decorated shakes look amazing and ready for posting on social media, but when you get down to actually drinking the milkshake, it’s just a milkshake. Additionally, each Crazy Shake ranges between $15-24, making it expensive and not worth a return trip.

Another food fad on the streets right now, is the fancy donut, loaded with breakfast cereal, crushed cookies or interesting glazes, fillings and toppings. But running sometime at $5 each, are they really worth it? Do they really taste that unique? Not really. At the end of the day it’s just a donut with a ton of sugary junk on top that gives you a headache.

With countless new food trends popping up all of the time, the few that last need to be adaptable to an ever changing market. Some trends aren’t all hype though, and actually become as common as pizza and burgers. 

Acai bowls and boba teas were once trends, but have lasted due to their enjoyability and acceptable price points, not just their photo appeal. The urge to create a product that sells well on social media is understandable, but establishments shouldn’t neglect the actual taste and quality of the food.

It’s great to want to try something new and see what all the hype is about, but posting mediocre food on your Instagram or Snapchat story gives advertising to a company that cares more about initial sales than satisfied customers. Let’s be responsible and not perpetuate food fad mystique just for the sake of photo-ops.